YIPPEE — Education Philanthropy Done Right
Being in education for nearly 30 years, I've seen a lot of philanthropy applied in the sector. I'm sure most of it has been helpful, but it rarely works really well.
That's why I was pleasantly surprised to discover YIPPEE — this is philanthropy done right and I'm sharing it here with the hope that more funders will learn from this approach to maximize their impact.
What is YIPPEE?
YIPPEE is a website that gives educators points that they can use to buy products. 1 point equals 1 US dollar.
Educators receive the equivalent of $500 just by signing up on the website — which takes 2 minutes. Yup, $500 for 2 minutes of your time.
The products that are available to buy with points are sourced from various publishers who offer high-quality educational resources (some of my GoVenture resources are on YIPPEE).
Educators can keep earning points by posting product reviews — 100 for a simple review, sometimes more for an extended one. 250 points can also be earned by attending online professional development sessions, which typically are only 1-hour long.
Talk about easy money!
Why is this unique in philanthropy?
- No Funding Applications. Educators don't have to spend hours writing up funding applications, waiting for weeks or months to discover if they'll be approved, and then experience disappointment when denied. YIPPEE eliminates this unnecessary energy drain and rejection that often discourages educators from trying their best.
- Choice. With YIPPEE, educators are not forced to use a specific resource because it's free, required by an administrator, or funded by a third party. Educators get to choose resources that best match the way they like to teach and the needs of their students.
- Better Resources. Let's face it — free resources are usually not the best resources. They may lack features, support, and future upgrades. And even the best quality free resources are not the best fit for every instructor and student. YIPPEE solves this by enabling educators to access fee-based products at no cost. The product provider gets paid by YIPPEE.
- Freedom to Experiment. It's rare that a teacher is provided funding to experiment with a new way of teaching and learning. And with no strings attached. With YIPPEE, educators don't have to ask for permission to buy something. They don't have to ask for forgiveness if things don't quite work out. And they don't have to write up reports to justify what was tried. Freedom.
- Avoid the Branding Trap. Many nonprofits frequently create their own resources (or pay people like me to create them) because they want their own brand on the content. That's a problem. First, it means they are spending time and money to create content that likely has already been created elsewhere. Second, the final product is usually not as good as what's already available from more experienced and better-funded providers. This means an enormous amount of energy is focused on doing things that do not best serve the needs of educators and students. YIPPEE avoids this by curating the best products already available and allowing educators to access them at no cost. YIPPEE partners with other content providers rather than compete with them — the result is that everyone wins.
What's the Catch?
The only catch is that YIPPEE is not (yet) widely available —
- YIPPEE launched in 2022 and is only available to educators in the USA.
- The content focus is currently on entrepreneurship education, which includes business subjects like marketing, accounting, startup, etc.
- Funding for using points to purchase paid products is currently (as of 2024) limited to supporting teachers in specfic regions of the US states or who have attended certain events. As more funders come on board, YIPPEE will be able to expand its offering to fully benefit instructors in other regions.
But even if an educator is not (yet) eligible to use points to purchase paid products, they can still benefit in four ways:
- Discover curated resources.
- Read (real) instructor reviews.
- Collect points that may be usable in the future when your region is funded.
- Some resources are free and do not require points, so they are available educators throughout the USA.
Sign Me Up
YIPPEE Website — https://yippee.exchange
Create an account — https://yippee.exchange/referral/F6DCAFCA1
Some of my GoVenture educational games and simulations are on YIPPEE.
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I'm Mathew Georghiou and I write about how games are transforming education and learning. I also share my experience as an entrepreneur inventing products and designing educational resources used by millions around the world. More about me at Georghiou.com